smiled, knowing he hadn’t meant it the way it sounded. But she could hope. “It’s too early for breakfast, and I could use a couple of hours’ sleep.”
“Go on up. Your room is ready.”
“Thanks.” She took another sip of coffee, thinking the room he was referring to was just that—her room. And it had her signature all over it. She had decorated it to her liking and it was the one she always slept in whenever she came to visit. It was right across the hall from his.
She placed the cup in the sink. “I’ll be up before the ranch hands are ready for breakfast.”
“You don’t have to. We can handle things without you. Your luggage comes in the house and everything else gets stored in the barn, right?”
“Right.”
She didn’t have to tell him that most of the stuff in the truck was what she didn’t trust the moving company to take care of. They were keepsakes—things that had sentimental value and had once belonged to her grandmother but were now hers.
“Thanks for letting me stay here, Reese.”
He glanced over at her as he poured another cup of coffee for himself. She felt his gaze and it stimulated something inside her. “You don’t have to thank me, Kenna. What’s mine is yours.”
Something stirred deep within her again and she drew in a sharp breath before nodding her head. She turned to leave the kitchen and had almost made it to the dining room when Reese called out to her.
“Kenna?”
She stopped and turned around with a practiced smile. “Yes?”
“I’m glad you’re here.”
Something in Kenna’s chest tightened and a part of her wanted to race across the room, throw herself into his arms and declare that she was glad to be anywhere he was—always. Instead she said. “I’m glad I’m here, too.”
Before she could say something else, something she would later regret, she quickly walked in the direction of her room.
Reese slid his hands down his face as he watched her leave. They were both tired, and maybe that was the reason he had picked up on the tension between them. He knew there was something going on. He could tell by the firm set of her lips and her body language.
He took a sip of his coffee and tried replaying everything that had happened since she’d arrived. For some reason he needed to clear his mind of a few things and make heads or tails of the situation. She had arrived at his door a little past four o’clock in the morning. He hadn’t been able to sleep knowing she was on the road at night and driving a rented U-Haul truck alone, so he was relieved when he’d heard the sound of the truck pulling into the yard.
Even though it took less than three hours to drive from Austin to Houston for most people, he knew Kenna wasn’t like most people when it came to driving at night. When she was tired and sleepy, she couldn’t stay awake. She had promised him that she’d get plenty of rest before making the trip, but he knew she hadn’t done that. When he had talked to her before she’d left Austin, several friends were still at her place seeing her off.
The original plan was for her to leave Austin around six o’clock in the evening. That way she would have arrived by nine o’clock that night. But instead she hadn’t left Austin until well past midnight, which had annoyed the hell out of him. He had been ready to bite her head off when he’d opened the door at four in the morning. However one look at her and he had been so glad to see that she had arrived safe and sound that he had pushed his anger aside. But now he was getting mad again.
Taking another sip of his coffee, he moved away from the counter to glance out the window. The sun was just starting to rise, which meant that the ranch hands would be up and stirring soon. Although he worked full-time for Madaris Explorations, he still maintained a working cattle ranch. His spread wasn’t as big as his uncle Jake’s or his brother Chancellor’s by any means, but a part of him would always be a rancher.
His foreman, Joe Seaborne, had been with him since he’d built the ranch five years ago. Before that Joe had worked for his uncle Jake, and he had come highly recommended. Joe was a good man and kept things running smoothly. His uncle Jake was using Reese and Chancellor’s land to expand the breeding program for his Red Brangus cattle.
He turned away from the window when he heard the key being inserted in the lock and wasn’t surprised when Joe walked in smiling.
“I saw that big truck out front. I guess that means Kenna has arrived.”
Reese shook his head, grinning. Of course most of his men knew Kenna and knew what a fantastic cook she was. Whenever she came to visit, she’d spoil them by preparing whatever they liked to eat. Even the ranch cook, Tanker Jones, enjoyed eating Kenna’s food every once in a while.
“Yes, Kenna is here, but that doesn’t mean she’ll be at anybody’s beck and call.”
Reese knew it was hard for the big bear of a man to look sheepish, but he managed to do just that. “Of course not, Reese, but I’m sure one Sunday dinner won’t hurt, will it?”
“You’ll have to ask her.” And there was no doubt that Joe would ask, like there was no doubt Kenna would prepare more than one Sunday dinner for his men. “Just remember she starts her job with the HPD in a couple of weeks. Until then she has to get settled in here.”
Joe smiled. “I understand. And speaking of new jobs, that guy we hired starts today. He’s already here.”
Reese nodded. “I’ll meet with him later. You did check him out before bringing him on, right?”
“Yes. He came highly recommended by his last employer.”
“Good. We don’t want a repeat of the last guy we hired.”
Last year a new hire ended up skipping out with Joe’s favorite saddle. Luckily they were able to catch him when the police stopped the culprit as he was speeding out of town.
Reese decided now was as good a time as any to meet with his new hire. He had a feeling Kenna would sleep longer than she intended, which was fine with him. Her schedule had been hectic the last couple of weeks as she packed up and moved from Austin to start a new life in Houston. As far as he was concerned she needed the rest, and he was going to make sure she got it.
Chapter 3
Kenna ran her fingers through her short curls once more before sliding her feet into her sandals to go downstairs. She had only meant to sleep a few hours, but a quick glance at the clock showed it was almost noon. The luggage Reese had put in her bedroom was proof that he and his men had unloaded the truck without her help.
Hearing voices outside her bedroom window, she walked over to the sill and saw Reese talking to a few of his men on the ground below. She recognized all of them except one, so she figured he must be the new guy Reese had mentioned he was hiring. He was a pretty nice looking man. But the woman in her couldn’t help but appreciate Reese, especially in the looks departments. He was eye candy of the most luscious kind, and he epitomized what tall, dark and handsome truly meant. As far as she was concerned, no other man looked as good in a pair of jeans as Reese Madaris. But then he cleaned up rather nicely too, she thought, remembering
